Pillar of the People
The Pillar of the People is a party in the Mordusian Federal Republic, founded by Ioannes Lombas in 2171. History Ioannes Lombas was a well respected academic at the Mordusian Institute of Politology when he decided to found a new party in 2171, based on laissez-faire. He wrote many popular books about the essence of politics, including "The True Path" and "An Essay Concerning Our Heritage and the Nature of Government". Since then, the party has found it difficult to identify itself with its Lombasian heritage. Party Leaders proved highly efficient, though they had the tendency to present the party as their own. Therefore, name and even ideology changes became frequent and party instability the rule. In 2321, when its 150 year existence was celebrated, László de Hevesy, a mathematician and marshal in the Mordusian Army, attempted a successful coup against the party leadership at the time. The party had been the largest party for forty years, but de Hevesy saw a declining support and voter fatigue. He and fellow high ranking army members, backed by the academic wing of the party - that never lost any of its influence -, threw a shadow over Mordusian politics for fifteen years. Hevesy was elected President seven times and "ruled" between 2321 and 2335 with "an iron hand", as his biographer put it. After the "Lombasian Regain", the party again faced difficult times, sometimes referred to as the "Lombasian Loss". The anarchist wing of the party, which had always been a minority, succeeded in taking over the religious one in the spirit of Saartje van Kampsch, a charismatic anarchist conservative Quaker belonging to the Dutch minority. Though she was elected thrice and enjoyed a lot of popularity, she was a very controversial figure among her peers. Especially her love life provoked a lot of turmoil. Married to railroad tycoon Bernhard Styles she had a love affair with Xaviér Lombas, a descendant of the founder. After Styles divorced her, she married Sarah Eyman and publicly testified that she had a lesbian for her entire life. Eyman was Chancellor of the Republic for seven years and their marriage was criticized by both their intimate circle as the media. After the death of van Kampsch during her third term, due to her continuous struggle with tuberculosis, Constance Lane won the presidency and the party. Thus, the "Moderate Party" was born in the light of the party's 200 year existence, once again with the promise to return to Lombasianism. Heribert Klaus was elected Speaker of the Party in 2357, for the first time by the National Congress and not the Libertarian Octet. In 2363, however, the Octet did replace the retiring Klaus with Laurence Attleby. Laurence Attleby received some minor criticism when he married Brenda Low, the Party Leader of the Mordusian Democratic Union. When he retired, new Speaker Julie Moeyens successfully asked the National Congress to change the party name into "Conservative Party" to better suit the policy followed. Because of various threats sent to high-ranked party officials, the Conservative Party's National Congress mandated the new presidential candidate, Markus Halle-Soestyn, to organize a militia. This has received serious criticism from outside the party. The militia was disbanded in 2373. When Johan Viljoen retired as a Speaker in 2400, the Octet found it was no longer able to guarantee any party stability towards the electorate and disbanded the party. However, in 2564, with the publication of Mey de Saer's "History of Lombasianism in Mordusia: A critical essay" came renewed interest in Lombas' philosophy. A "Committee to Establish a Lombasianist Party" was founded and in 2565 the Pillar of the People appeared on the political landscape with de Saer as Speaker. The party was able to affirm its claims on the electorate, gaining about 25% in its first elections. Charles de Jahú is the current Speaker. The Triumvirate In 2368 party officials started to address the three main functionaries of the party (Speaker, Faction Leader and Presidential Candidate) as the "Triumvirate". Members of the current Triumvirate are: *Charles de Jahú (Speaker of the Party) *Anne-Sophie de Caullet (Faction Leader in the Assembly) *Samuel d'Hassigny (Presidential Candidate) Party Logo The logo of the Pillar of the People consists out of three parts. *The Apple - to indicate the creation of a healthy and kind environment *The Five Stars - to indicate the union of the five Mordusian provinces *The Happy Human - to indicate the individual liberty and respect for values Emanuel Rojas won the Party Logo Contest of 2368. Under new party ideology, the Apple stands for poetry, the Happy Human for anarchism and the Five Stars for elitism. Basic Information Members *Nickname: "Lombasianists" *Membership: 640 400 (as of October 22, 2569) **293 700 men **346 700 women Minimum requirements: *21 years of age (18-21 are allowed to enjoy a free pre-membership "observer" status) Party Media Through the years, some media moguls have been prominent members of the Pillar of the People. Thus, while most Mordusian media claim to be neutral, the following are connected to the Party either through direct ownership or owner's membership. Newspapers: *The Republic (National) *The Morning View (National) *Emerald Times (National) *De Nationale Tijd (National - Dutch) *La Prévision (National - French) *Salau Chapette (National - French dialect) *The Daily Talan Observer (Sayoon province) *The Bayonne Herald (Sammodra province) *Hosamia Daily (Hosamia province) Radio Stations (only national ones listed): *MNR - Mordusian National Radio *NNC - National NewsCast (TV station also) *CRRT - Culture Review Radio Transmission *IRRT - International Review Radio Transmission *NPRC - National Parliamentary Radio Correspondence *HTR - Hit Time Radio *AMC - Alternative Music Channel (TV station also) Television Stations (only national ones listed): *NNC - National NewsCast (Radio station also) *PPNB - Pillar of the People National Broadcast *CTV - Central Television *Channel 8 *Channel 11 *AMC - Alternative Music Channel (Radio station also) *MFC - Mordusian Folk Channel *TTV - Talk TV *NatDeb - National Debate TV *Internat 1 (Seleya continent news) *Internat 2 (international news) The Leaders For more information, go to the Pillar of the People Leaders page Political Thought Laissez faire Laissez-faire or laisser-faire is short for laissez faire, laissez aller, laissez passer, a French phrase meaning "let do, let go, let pass." It is generally understood to be a doctrine that maintains that private initiative and production is best to roam free, opposing economic interventionism and taxation by the state beyond that which is perceived to be necessary to maintain peace, security, and property rights. Conservatism The conservatism of the party was a term first used by its opponents but later used by the party itself when Mordusia became a fairly laissez faire country during the 2200s. With the reestablishment of the party in 2565, conservatism has lost its dominant character in the party. "Progress Through Reaction" "Progress Through Reaction" was an essay written in 2298 by Sarah Hess, President between 2303 and 2307. As the first homosexual President, her main interest was to keep the laissez faire spirit in the party while not neglecting the progression of ethics and moral. She wrote: "During the past century laissez faire meant that one should keep his hands of his neighbor's wallet. The century we are about to enter will prove that the consequence of this ideology is that one should keep his hands off his neighbor's peaceful preferences as well." The essay fulminated against the welfare state on the one hand, but also against the arrogance of big business on the other. It would inspire Alexander Cameron, a Minister of Finance, in his Cameron Reforms during the 2310s, which lowered the budget and the taxes impressively but canceled all taxes on lower and middle incomes completely. It would also lead to the establishment of the Karel Asch Foundation as a charity institution of the party. Hess succeeded in convincing the party, and many citizens, that progression does not necessarily demand enlargement of the state as well. "In Defense of Popular Opinion" In 2357 Catherine Sass-Morgan, as presidential candidate for the Conservative Party for the 2358 elections, published a book called "In Defense of Popular Opinion". Sass-Morgan, who taught Modern Political Theories at the Catholic University of Bayonne, expressed the idea of Popular Decision Making (PDM) as a natural consequence of the opinion of a country's citizenry. Thus, she stated that the policy of a country's government must be entirely based on public opinion or the country will suffer from revolutions, civil wars, secession and coup d'etats. Now, while this might not seem innovative, Sass-Morgan concluded that ideological fragmentation of a regime is therefore antisocial and results in particracy - the rule of parties that divide the "natural character" of the citizenry. The book became increasingly popular amongst intellectuals, especially those adherent to Lombasian thought. Many deemed it to be an apology for laissez-faire rule in Mordusia. Critics accused Sass-Morgan of "empty-box"-writing. She responded famously: "They say my book is nothing but an empty box. These people have finally understood what the state is all about: a box. The content, the masses, they cannot understand, and neither can political theory." Poetic anarchist elitism Following his work on the history of Lombasianism in Mordusia Mey de Saer wrote extensively on a definition of the founder's philosophy, bearing in mind that "name and even ideology changes became frequent and party instability the rule." He came up with the idea of poetic anarchist elitism. In de Saer's words: "Poetic: romantic, caring, passionate, longing, loving. Anarchist: against, rational, objectively, individual, doing away. Elitism: from above, oligarchical, all-knowing, all-fulfilling, all-dominating." Party Organization Speaker of the Party The Speaker of the Party is chosen for a term of one year by the National Congress. He or she has to live in Sayoon, preferably Talan (its provincial capital) - but he or she does not need to be born there. The Octet The Octet (before 2368: Libertarian Octet) is the Supreme Council of the Pillar of the People. It consists out of eight members, each chosen for a maximum of ten years. Their duty is to elect, assist and advise the Speaker of the Party. Each Provincial Assembly appoints two members to the Octet. Sayoon is not represented in the Octet as the Speaker is their delegate when national matters are concerned. The Octet meets at the headquarters of the Pillar of the People, located in the heart of Talan, Sayoon province, called "National College of Lombas". The Provincial Assemblies Local party groups each elect representatives to the Provincial Assemblies according to a proportional system. The five assemblies gather every year, usually in January, for three days in the National Congress to discuss, elect a Speaker and make various other important decisions. Role in Mordusian Politics See the Pillar of the People in Mordusian Politics page Charity The Pillar of the People is known for its support of charity. Its Karel Asch Foundation coordinates projects from delivering internet access to poor villages to setting up day cares and handing out food packages. Sarah Hess, the founding chairwoman of the Karel Asch Foundation from 2298 until 2303, was nominated as presidential candidate by a Convention in September 2302. She had a Ph.D in nuclear physics, taught at the Catholic University of Talan, handed out food packages in the Hurom-district of Bayonne every week, and, most of all, she was a lesbian, married to Emily Lowell, the sister of Henry Lowell, a Member of the Assembly and Minister. She got elected and became the first homosexual President of Mordusia. She was President from 2303-2307, elected twice. James Hertzog was the next chairman of the Karel Asch Foundation. He served from 2303 to 2313. Rosemary Dwayn-Sawyer was the next chairwoman. She was married to Claude Berry, an important intellectual renowned for his book "Path to Freedom" and was the president of the Center for the New Mordusia, a laissez-faire think-tank. In 2313 the Karel Asch Foundation sent tons of food to help the people in Sekowo. In 2321, the KAF went global, making it the official party organization. It received the 2321 Hero of Terra award "for promoting global cooperation in the fight against poverty". In 2353 John Beckhard, former Minister of Health and Social Services, succeeded Rosemary Dwayn-Sawyer as chairman of the Karel Asch Foundation. He was succeeded by Emily Southerwell in 2379. Charles de Jahú, Speaker of the Pillar of the People, has been the chairman of the Foundation from 2560 on. Category:Political parties in Mordusia